Thinking of changing the car for a van? Advice please?

Decided I'd quite like a van, I'm always lugging DIY kit about. Bikes and other hobbies mean it would make some of my leisure time easier... and quite fancy doing the odd Saturday morning for £50 for colleagues etc to get extra beer money.

I've currently got an 06 plate civic cdti and I reckon I can get about 3.5k for it on a private sale.

I can feasibly push another grand on top of this (although £500 would be more ideal) so budget is about £4k with an absolute max of £4.5k.

VW transporters were my first choice but seem to fetch a premium and are probably out of budget so have been having a quick scout about.

Quite like Mercedes Vitos and I've heard Ford Transits are good for the money.

Anything else I should consider?

What's the tax like on a van?

Insurance companies that I should look at? Currently pay about £350 fully comp, is this likely to be much higher?

Any advice much appreciated as I know very little about them, driven a few when renting them to move house in the past etc but beyond that I'm a complete novice.

Lots of similar threads have a search. Your biggest issue may be many insurance companies will not carry car NCB over to vans. One solution is to go for a Belingo type vehicle. I considered same thing but settled for a old shape Rav4 in which you can remove the rear seats so van like lugging ability, resale values are high and generally outside your budget unfortunately.

Look for a private sale, most garage prices are advertised price +VAT. You may get a early, but current shape Peugeot Expert/Citroen Dispatch/Fiat Escudo for that sort of money, but look for the 1.6 HDI threads on here to learn about the potential issues.
Vauxhall Vivaro or it's clones seem pretty popular also.
Tax on mine is £220 per year.
Insurance price is the usual postcode/driver/vehicle/mileage lottery. Normal insurers don't tend to do vans at any sensible price, your NCB may not be transferable from a car, (not positive about that last bit, you'd have to check with the company)
You'll be lucky to get £50 quid for favours, a few cans of beer is more like the going rate.

edit - and finally, a RAV4 or Skoda Roomster is NOT a suitable option instead of a van.

Insurance- had to move companies but use one of the comparison sites that does vans, NCB etc. moved over instantly. Price not much different.
Tax- was around the £220 mark

Some of the downsides first..

Fuel going from 50+mpg to 30-32mpg was getting expensive by the time I left the UK.
Speed limits, dropping 10mph most places was annoying.
Nipping to the shops etc. car parks a bit harder, need to watch height barriers etc. and come up with a good way to put your shopping in the back.

Upsides

Loads of space, bed in the back, gas BBQ & stove, chairs & table. Changing in the back when it's wet etc.

I've never had a single issue swapping NCD between car and van - but I always use the phone to talk to someone for the best deals (direct line, tesco van,....). Its usually slightly dearer to insure a van than a similar car (unless the van has more than 3 seats which get proper expensive).

I'd recommend a large MPV (Galaxy, Sharan etc) with the seats out, unlsss you want to be really dirty in there (ahem).

Far nicer to drive than vans both in terms of kit, ride and handling, and if you get a decent engine like the 170bhp diesel I hired, pretty nippy too. And better fuel economy. And you have the option of putting some or all of the seats back in.

They are pretty big, but of course not as big as a van if you do have to lug properly large loads, and you would be wanting to look after the interior a bit better than with a van.

If I were you I'd at least test drive an MPV so you can compare the driving experience.

It's a 1.6, and it can be a MPV with seats up or van with seats down. Fuel economy very good, it's a diesel, and it's nice to drive. It can take a decent load (oo-err!) fits two bikes in without having to remove wheels, or we can put our camping gear in and put the bikes on a towball mounted rack.

It's got so many uses, it's fab, and after Mr Panda and I struggling with a Corsa for a couple of years with our outdoor lifestyle I'd honestly say it's been the best purchase we've made.